Anisotropic Time-Dependent Modeling of Tunnel Excavation in Squeezing Ground

Most of the viscoplastic models used to describe the constitutive behavior of squeezing grounds assume isotropic deformation. However, it is commonly observed that squeezing behavior is characterized not only by large time-dependent but also often by anisotropic deformations. This study uses a semi-empirical approach based on the analysis of convergence measurements and a numerical model that takes into account the time-dependent and the anisotropic response of the rock mass to investigate the squeezing behavior of the Saint-Martin-la-Porte access gallery, excavated within the Lyon–Turin railway project. We first show how the semi-empirical convergence law of Sulem et al. (Int J Rock Mech Min Sci Geomech Abstr 24(3):155–164, 1987a; Int J Rock Mech Min Sci Geomech Abstr 24(3):145–154, 1987b) can be extended to anisotropic tunnel closure by considering an elliptical deformation of the rock mass and by fitting the convergence data along the principal axes of deformation. A new anisotropic time-dependent constitutive model is then proposed. This model includes ubiquitous joints of specific orientation embedded in an isotropic viscoplastic medium. This model is implemented in FLAC3D and numerical simulations are performed to back-analyze the anisotropic closure of the Saint-Martin-la-Porte access gallery. An efficient two-step procedure for calibrating the model parameters is proposed: the parameters of the isotropic solid matrix are first estimated by performing axisymmetric numerical simulations. The parameters of the ubiquitous joints are then calibrated by performing 3D computations. It is shown that the numerical results reproduce very well the convergence measurements of the studied sections of Saint-Martin-la-Porte gallery.